The Forum

Loyalty Should Work Both Ways

May 3, 2016

I have read many stories now apropos the Afghanistani Interpreters who worked alongside the British Forces during that war. Many, at appalling risks to themselves and their families, became embedded with British units providing crucial information, intelligence and local knowledge. Many lives were saved through their actions and they were highly thought of by almost all Brit troops. Now we have withdrawn from Afghanistan some might say retreated if we were honest. As so many of us predicted the Taliban has now retaken Helmand Province almost completely and the many lives and limbs sacrificed by our troops have proven to be fruitless. In time the full pre Afghan war status quo will be reverted to and it will be as if we were never there, as if no lives were lost, no bodies mutilated and maimed, no lives destroyed. But what became of those brave interpreters? The US took most of theirs home with them or at least facilitated their passage to the US. we made vague promises to ours, promises that were predicated on then having to prove their lives were at risk after we left. many have died or been forced to flee their homes as the mounting Taliban resurgence simply made it too dangerous for them or their wider families. A few HAVE been allowed to settle here but many if not most have been refused. Yesterday we read of one brave soul who made a harrowing overland where he was fingerprinted in Italy and eventually managed to land here in England. "Fingerprinted in Italy" cried the officials, "that means he's not eligible to stay here, he should seek asylum in Italy." At his wits end, suffering from all sorts of nightmares and fears he hanged himself rather than be deported. Despite thousands of signatures on petitions, signatures from huge numbers of servicemen and women across the rank spectrum he was to be deported. So; we allow all sorts of radicals to settle here, we fail to deport terrorist supporters,we harbour hate preaching mullahs, foreign rapists et al but we do somehow manage to effect deportation for people who risked their lives for us. Well, in this case we were thwarted because he killed himself. Makes one feel really proud doesn't it!!

Loyalty Should Work Both Ways

May 3, 2016

Dave, And that's the way the Tory Government have treated him (& the others) - can you imagine the way Corbyn & his crowd would have behaved in similar circumstances ?
We are not at war at the moment, so the Armed Forces and their brave supporters (like the interpreters), aren't needed as vote catchers, hence the pathetic treatment of this poor guy - may he rest in peace, with others hanging their heads in shame for creating the situation to cause his death.
John (JKW)

Loyalty Should Work Both Ways

May 4, 2016

Guys nothing has changed remember we ( United Kingdom) has for a couple of hundred years the finest infantry man serving the Crown ,they have fought in all the major conflicts of the 20/21 centuries ,they are paid less than the poultry sum our present day armed forces are paid, yes they are mercenaries yes they come from the Indian sub continent ,yes you know who I'm posting about The Gurkas and as yet they after serving many years in Our Armed Forces have not got the right "If they want to settle in the UK" so the treatment of these people from Afganistan is no surprise to me !!

Loyalty Should Work Both Ways

May 4, 2016

The priorities of this country are absolutely back to front (the polite way of saying ass about face) when it comes to the people who work with us in conflicts within their own country, as guides, interpreters etc, but when the action is done, and the UK forces return to UK, they leave these people abandoned by the UK government, in their own country, obvious targets for the enemy UK were fighting. Our leaders have no respect for these Afghan translators, guides, informers, whatever, who are now left to face the music from their own Afghan militants who are keen to kill them because of their service to UK forces in that country, something which our stupid leaders seem to think is not our problem. The Afghans who worked with UK forces ARE our problem since in their insane reasoning, our erswhile leaders, cosy and safe in UK, care not a jot for these Afghan helpers. Instead of helping them, this country is leaving them on their own, while our government says they are not the UK's problem. Bring them here by all means, they deserve our compassion, rather than giving it to the IS faction and their associates who are determined to destroy our way of life. Shame on this government of ours, they are spineless morons, no matter which party they represent.We should always help our friends, NOT our wooly headed enemies.

Loyalty Should Work Both Ways

May 5, 2016

what can one expect from political liars, we must remember the 50,000 white Russians who fought for this country in the WW2, also the Chinese seamen who also brought supplies to this embattled nation, into L/pool, London, etc it was like a bus service, a lot of whom married and settled here during and after the war, not long after the war ended, the establishment, to the eternal shame of this country shipped the Russians back to USSR where they were promptly sent to the gulags never to be heard of again, for the Chinese it was as if the German solutions to the Jews were now being applied to them, 03/400hrs knock on the door, immediate arrest and sent to China no thought to their families, once again upon arrival they disappeared, I fear that Johnny Gurkha will carry on being classed as second class where pay is concerned, we need to start petitions and get Joanne Lumley involved again in buttonholing those responsible.

Loyalty Should Work Both Ways

May 5, 2016

I agree totally Bob,it is a crime for our "leaders" to ignore these brave men from Afghanistan acting as translators,guides etc, when they are being chased down by other, more militant Afghans in their own country. By all means bring them (and their families as needs be) to a safer haven in UK. We admire their courage, and despair of our so called leaders, (AKA the brain dead)